unusual exposure

[meandmywifey]

Hello, I searched through the archives and i was unable to find any questions like mine.

On  Sunday i was at a local park with some of my friends and i was playing basketball. The game was about done and i saw the guy that was guarding me wiping off blood with his shirt from the top of his hand because he was apparently cut or scratched. My first reaction was to look at myself and see if i had any cuts or anything like that and sure enough i did on the top of my hand. I had a scratch from someones nails and it wasnt really deep it just took the first couple of layers of skin off maybe, It didnt even look like it was really bleeding just real red inside. Well anyways i pretty much quite the game because after i saw that the guy had a cut on his hand i didnt want to get anywhere near him. Now i am worried that i may have gotten some of that blood in my scratch. I dont know how long the guy could have had that cut and stuff. Am i at risk for HIV from something like this? I have always gotten scratched or cut from playing basketball as everyone does but i never seen a guy bleeding and then also finding a cut on me at the same time. Please do i need to be tested from this or can i feel confident that HIV is not transmitted this way and i have nothing to worry about. Please help!

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Both of the above.  PLEASE stop worrying.  EWH

[meandmywifey]

Thanks for your response, I dont mean to second guess your response but is it a no risk because of that fact that no one has ever been known to have gotten HIV from basketball or because of the science of the disease that my scratch would have had to be a real deep or large cut that was continuoulsy bleeding. Please answer

[Edward W Hook, MD]

HIV is not tranmittd in the manner you described.  You do not need testing.  EWH

[peekawho]

And curiously, Pecha wrote in very much the same manner as you.  And he had quite a talent for making multiple usernames.  

[peekawho]

I'm not the doc, but I can tell you that #1--there certainly HAS been a basketball scratch transmission question asked before (Pecha, I believe was the avid questioner) and #2--NO, HIV is not transmitted in this way.